Updated Animatic

After having discussions with Dan and the group yesterday a difficult decision had to be made. Due to circumstances involving the delay in work, and the possible upcoming situation that I may have to cover this work, the scene with the professor's introduction has been cut down by more than half. Even though I really like this sequence and I am sad to see it go, we just can't physically animate 33 seconds for this one sequence in time. I have also added sound effects for the audience bits and the new theme song. The film might technically be longer now, but that is only because the credits are now longer.

Progress Report from Dan

The group has just met with Dan. The good news is he likes my work and he thinks Simon inking is going well. Basically I just have to meet my own personal schedule and get the frames inked and scanned by next week.

The bad news is Al and James. They are really worrying me and Dan. They have got quite a lot of work to do. They have been given to Monday to get a substantial amount of their scenes done or I'm going to have to take over.

Oh I'm nervous and worried.

Progress

As Simon and I discovered tracing every image again in Flash was just not practical, so we decided that it would be quicker for me to ink over every frame and use Illustrator's Live trace. That's is what I am doing now.

Elisha and Harry have finished the Background. Our second years Lewis and Neil have come up with some great character designs and Al and James are (hopefully) progressing nicely with their scenes.

Right now I am quite close to freaking out.

Current Progress

As Simon and I discovered tracing every image again in Flash was just not practical, so we decided that it would be quicker for me to ink over every frame and use Illustrator's Live trace. That's is what I am doing now.

Elisha and Harry have finished the Background. Our second years Lewis and Neil have come up with some great character designs and Al and James are (hopefully) progressing nicely with their scenes.

Good job!

Progress

After exhausting tests, we have come to the realisation that tracing each frame again in Flash is just not practical. We will have to use the live-trace function in Illustrator in stead. I am therefore inking over all my finished frames carefully before I scan them in. I encourage all my other animators to do the same.

Introducing

This is just to introduce are two new teammates, Lewis Taylor and Neil Pinnock. These two Second years have agreed to help out with the project. Many thanks to them. 10 seconds of animation total in length should be fine.

Research

For faster speed we are using the Live Trace function to trace the drawings. It gives it a Ed, Edd n Eddy feel.

Tutorial for Illustrator

http://edutechwiki.unige.ch/en/Flash_bitmap_tracing_tutorial

Tracing a bitmap with Illustrator

Step1 - Trace the bitmap

Illustrator CS3 has more sophisticated bitmaps tracing features. Here is a very short example that includes a shape tween:

• Open the picture in Illustrator
• Select it
• Now you will have a "Live Trace button" on the control panel on top
• Next to it is a little pulldown menu from which you can select various options, for a portrait you may choose "Color 16"

Live tracing with IllustratorCS3

Once you hit the trace button, the controls on top will change and you can play with all sorts tracing methods and parameters

Live tracing controls with IllustratorCS3

Step2 - Import to Flash

• Copy/paste if from Illustrator with the options: Paste using AI File Importer preferences and untick maintain layers
• You may adjust the size of the stage to the size of the picture somewhat, I chose to add some big margins for a reason you will see later.
• Convert it to a symbol (so that you have a copy in the library)

Step 3 - Break it Apart

• Then right-click->Break Apart
• You have to do this several times, since illustrator produced object groups within object groups (use ctrl-Z if you think you went too far).

Step 4 - Create a new keyframe

• Right-click on frame 20 and hit F6 to create a new keyframe with the same picture.

Step 5 - Distort the picture in keyframe 1

Try everything you can

• Select parts and change the color with the paint bucket. That's actually the only thing I did
• You also can move parts, but probably you then should start with a much simple ray trace.
• Distort parts with the Selection Tool, the Subselection tool and the Free Transform tool

Step 6 - Add a shape tween between the two frames

... enjoy

Tune

• You also may at the very end (after the last keyframe) insert the original jpg picture. Tracing bitmaps is a very difficult issue, since there are many kinds of algorithms you can select from.

Basically the machine must be told how to group similar pixels together into a vector objects. For example, an algorithm can group together pixels with similar brightness, similar color, or try to find lines from similar pixels.

Publish

• In the HTML setting you probably want to take off the "loop" option

You can admire the result

Files: flash-cs3-shape-picture-morphing.*)

Directory: http://tecfa.unige.ch/guides/flash/ex/shape-tweening-intro/

Updated Animatic

I've updated the animatic with my pencil tests and Sam's Logo. I've also tried to add more shots of the audience like Mike and Dan suggested. Timing may need to be worked out.

Theme Music

Here is the theme music. I wanted this chicken-picking country feel to it. I like it. My brother Lewis wrote the music.

New Animation Tests, Drawings and Such

Here are some drawings from the animation. They are still drawings that will be animated later in after effects.

Here is the Prof with the light shade on his head.
Here is the Prof looking inot the audience.

Here is the Prof shocked with lightshade on his head.

Here is Mort worried.

Mort Twang.

Mort in pain..

Mort

Fatbback Bits in gravy gloop.

Well Mike told me to put more bits of the audience in, which I hope to get some 2nd years to do. Hence these are shots to tell the 2nd years what I need. I'll put them in the animatic.

Here are the two pencil tests that I did yesterday. The first is Mort being selected from the audience. The second is Mort's head swelling up and down. These are all made up of different shots, so you will see a lot happen in these videos.

Research

Here are some videos from YouTube I thought I put up for Research.

This episode of Dexter's Laboratory has a sound effect I really like.



This shows Dexter zipping around the lab is useful for research.



This I just really like.

Animation Video Tests

Here are some of my recent animation tests.



This first one is a redo of the Professor's Goodbye scene. Everything is good, but the fall is too slow. It was filmed on twos, so I can either remove frames or shoot on ones.






This second one is Susie's Ending. I need to re-draw the waving sequence as I think I drew the hands wrong. Hands are tricky.






These are just two bits of Mort in the background.






These are just miscellaneous RAM animations. Mostly of him hopping around.

Sam's Test

Sam did a test for the logo. I think it really works. Now to find some appropriate music to go with it.